The pre-trial detention of 179 suspects detained in August 2013 was renewed for 45 days Wednesday by Cairo Criminal Court, reported Youm7.
Hundreds were arrested and killed Aug. 14, 2013, during the dispersal of the Cairo Rabaa al-Adaweya sit-in that demanded the reinstatement of ousted President Mohamed Morsi on July 3, 2013.
Many of those arrested in the violence following the ouster have had their pre-trial detention repeatedly renewed for over a year; Egyptian law allows detention on remand for up to two years. Suspects found innocent are not compensated for the time they spent in prison.
More than 85 detainees have gone on a collective hunger strike, a figure that appeared in a statement by the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights Sept. 23, but the number of participants is speculated to be even higher.
The striking prisoners are protesting prolonged pre-trial detention with no indictment, as well as the 2013 protest law under which thousands are jailed.
The majority of the protesters arrested, however, face charges that include blocking public roads, possession of weapons and sabotage.
